


Falling

by DarkShadows93



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Angel Wings, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Aziraphale to the Rescue (Good Omens), Curse of Obedience, Drowning, Harm to Children, Hopeful Ending, Hurt Crowley, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Pining, Protective Crowley (Good Omens), Scene: Flood in Mesopotamia 3004 BC (Good Omens), Self-Doubt, Soft Crowley (Good Omens), Storms, Worried Aziraphale (Good Omens)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:53:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26096659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkShadows93/pseuds/DarkShadows93
Summary: "Crawly!" Aziraphale's cries were drowned by the crash of thunder. Flashes of light illuminated the iridescent black wings of the demon as he struggled against the harsh wind.  His blue eyes widened as he watched the demon sway, his wings slowing, unable to catch up."Crawly! Get back here! You can't save them all!" His voice seemed to falter, leaving him as another flash of lightning lit up the night sky, illuminating the demon as his body fell into the merciless sea."No!"
Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 108





	Falling

**Author's Note:**

> I want to thank [LeilaKalomi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeilaKalomi/pseuds/LeilaKalomi) for being an awesome beta!
> 
> Now if you haven't read the tags, I'm going to remind you that this fic does have a warning. CW: Children drowning and possible suicidal ideation. 
> 
> This was also based off a prompt from Good Omen Prompts on tumblr
> 
> So please enjoy

There were so many kids. 

Too many to count. Their screams drown out by the raging storms, their small frames clinging to life on anything they could reach. Trees, rocks, remains of their homes with bodies of loved ones sinking in the waves. It was unfair. All of these children were suffering, dying, as their lives were just beginning. Just starting to explore, only to have their life forces severed by a merciless God. For what? A stupid promise of a “rain bow.” An empty promise that She would never do any of this again. 

Times like this reminded Crawly why he questioned Her. Why he asked the simple question of “why must we make them suffer?” Was Lilith enough? Was seeing the pain in her eyes enough to make Her stop it? No, She had to bring children into it. 

Five children turned to ten. Ten soon to twenty. Their small bodies slowly weighed him down as he rescued them, herding them into the safe hold of the Ark. Every trip making him weaker, the divine rain slowly burning his skin, smoldering his soot-black tunic. Blisters burst every moment, intolerable pain burning through his flesh. Tears threatened to spill down his cheeks as a small girl wrapped her arms around his solar plexus, the girl's inconsolable sobs breaking him like the waves crashing against the Ark. Crawly wished he could do more. He wished he could've done so much more.

"Don't let the old man see you." He repeated the warning for what seemed like the hundredth time. His arms pulled the child away. He grasped her hand to lead her to the haven of children. 

He groaned, his raven-colored wings dripping water onto his feet, making it feel like he was walking on scolding sand. He was reaching his limit, but he knew that there were more children that should be spared. Crawly repeated the same motion as the child nervously looked up to him as a savior: a gentle kiss upon her head, and a gentle nudge towards the group. Like a mother to their child, Crawly remained in the shadows to make sure she was okay.

With a painful smirk, He turned his back from the haven only to make eye contact with the Guardian of the Eastern Gate, who met him with a cold, unknowing stare before he turned away. How could an angel allow this? How? He was supposed to be the one to end all suffering, not bring it about. He cursed God's name once more as he shambled past him. Exhaustion and divine pain would not stop from easing the suffering of the innocent children of Mesopotamia. 

Crawly groaned in pain, stretching out his massive wings before climbing top deck and taking off towards the skies. 

*~~~~~*

Aziraphale wished he could've done more. 

He wished he could save them. Ease the suffering of those poor children. But there were rules and orders that must be followed. If he didn't obey the order, not only would he be disobeying Gabriel, but he would also be disobeying the Word of God. Aziraphale couldn't bear to think of the consequences of such a heinous act. But watching Crawly fly out into the divine storm, rescuing children, coming back with red, bleeding blisters, Aziraphale started to doubt the morality of the Plan. 

The Plan- the  _ Great  _ Plan was ineffable. No one knew the intent. Angels were supposed to follow it as written even though they had never physically seen it. Did the Flood have to include the children? Innocent souls who had no clue about the evil around them. Infants barely out of the womb, wailing for their mother's milk. Did they truly have to die?

Aziraphale wished he didn't have to pretend not to notice. To ignore the sobs of children who had lost everything and everyone they loved slowly pulling at him by the seams. Crawly was right. Heaven was doing the stuff of demons. He was just as bad as any demon in the bottom layers of Hell. Now there was no way to take it back. Aziraphale was among the worst creatures of all. 

A crash of thunder made Aziraphale jump. His legs scrambled as he slipped on the smooth surface as he ran up top. Flashes of lightning illuminated the dark sky. 

"Crawly!" Aziraphale's cries were drowned by the crash of thunder. Flashes of light illuminated the iridescent black wings of the demon as he struggled against the harsh wind. His blue eyes widened as he watched the demon sway, his wings slowing, unable to catch up.

"Crawly! Get back here! You can't save them all!" His voice seemed to falter, leaving him as another flash of lightning lit up the night sky, illuminating the demon as his body fell into the merciless sea. 

"No!" 

A pair of alabaster wings shot out of the angel's back, propelling him into the unforgiving storm. The divine rain ran down his cheeks like silver tears, and his body felt weightless as he pushed his wings to their limits, his back already straining. 

_ For Crawly _ , he thought as he watched a pair of obsidian wings sink below the surface of the sea. Aziraphale swallowed before allowing his body to fall towards the sea in a stunning splendor, wings reaching for the sky before crashing into the harsh waves. 

*~~~~* 

Crawly felt like he was floating, his wings wrapping around him like a blanket as the cold sea pulled him down. He watched as the lightning reflected off the surface, the sensation of static running across his blistered skin. His topaz eyes struggled to remain open, gold staring up to the surface awaiting the end. 

He didn't want to exist in a world where innocent children were killed for being born. He didn't want to exist in a world where children suffered from illness and starvation and no one would help. Crawly could do so much more. Much more than Heaven above. But time was running short and the water was killing him.

His vision was fading, the dark shadows encroaching in the corners of his eyes. His body was burning, begging for mercy as a winged figure appeared. Their features were almost disfigured, shadowed by the impending death. He gave them a gentle smile as he slowly reached out to them. 

_ I welcome ye… now take me home… _

*~~~~*

The fire crackled, smoke slowly rising out of the small hearth warming the haven as the storm still raged outside. The children, now warm and fed, lay asleep in their small beds. Aziraphale paced the length of the haven, soothing the children who had nightmares while waiting for the demon to wake. Aziraphale closed his eyes as he sat on the floor beside him, his wings wrapped around the demon tight. Crawly was on death's door with discoporating or dying, his skin turning black with decay. 

His dear friend-  _ no  _ they weren't friends. Were they? This was the handful of times they had a run-in. A sly smile always on the demon's lips when appeared, the way he always seemed to hobble closer to him as if he had forgotten how to walk. Aziraphale was always so welcoming, moving slightly closer, mirroring his grins as something joyous happened. He’d allowed Crawly to hold him after Cain slew Abel in the fields. They were only friends, right? 

No, they had to be colleagues. Working together at times for the benefit of humanity. They shared a common goal, but were on opposite sides. So why was Crawly determined to save as many children as he could before falling into the seas? Crawly was an angel among demons. It didn't help the guilt that weighed down upon his shoulders. God forgive him for his anguish. God forgive him for being a horrible Principality. God forgive him for falling, for-

Crawly was only an adversary. Something he was supposed to thwart. He was the exemplification of evil. The mirror image to his own virtuous one. But why did it pain him to see his adversary so willing to accept the end, greeting it like an old friend? 

Aziraphale tried not to dwell on the thought for long, his alabaster wings draped around the obsidian ones as a protective shield. His fingers ran through the drenched auburn curls, tangled within thick strands. The black decay slowly faded into pale skin; blisters turned into faint scars and freckles to be forgotten over time. His healing skin looked like stars, each cluster forming its own nebulas. His fingers explored the galaxies of freckles on Crawly's face. 

It was so wrong. So wrong to be this close to a demon. So wrong to caress his cheek, feeling the warm breath of life run against his hands. Aziraphale shouldn't be feeling such emotions for an adversary. He shouldn't be feeling love and devotion for a demon. It was so wrong. An unforgivable offense. But Aziraphale found it was easy breaking the rules even when it was by mere accident. 

The angel gently ran his fingers against the demon's bottom lip, his own breath shuddering as he bit back the devotion. He had seen humans display the emotion hundreds of times. But to do it? He could never. It was never in the cards of the Guardian of the Eastern Gate. Unless…

His touch lingered, his heart struggled to comprehend the new waves of emotions that plagued him. Curiosity plagued him, pulling at him like a string to a pole. It seemed second nature to the humans, it was easy as breathing. Aziraphale leaned down to test the waters, his lips over the demon's. Closer. They were so-

Crawly moans, his lanky body shifting in his arms ending the near intimate moment. Aziraphale sat up quickly as the demon's topaz eyes slowly fluttered open. 

"Thank Heaven…" Aziraphale breathed out, grateful that he could stare into those golden eyes once more. He had started to believe that the divine storm was too much for the demon that he couldn't possibly wake up.

"Ngk…" Crawly's eyes slowly seemed to focus, his eyebrow raising in confusion before going into a coughing fit, "Angel? What-"

Aziraphale slowly pulled the demon into a sitting position, their wings still intertwined as Crawly gasped for air, sputtering out the last of the seawater, "What-"

"Hush, you're only going to make it worse." Aziraphale held onto Crawly's shoulder as the coughs wracked the demon's body, "To be honest, I was starting to think that you weren't going to wake up. The storm did a nasty number on you."

"What happened?" Crawly finally coughed out, clinging to the angel as a lifeline, "Angel, I remember flying back with another child and…"

"You fell from the sky…" Aziraphale finished as a sense of dread knowing that he failed to save a child, letting them parish into the sea. He was starting to feel sick, the guilt of the child pulling him deeper into the depths of Hell, "Oh Lord…"

"Did he survive?" Crawly tried to look past the sea of alabaster and obsidian feathers.

Aziraphale lowered his head in remorse, "I'm afraid not. I was-" he swallowed as he looked up to stare into the serpent's topaz eyes, "Do you know how foolish you are? Flying out into a divine storm like that? That storm has been ravaging the area for  _ days,  _ Crawly. No matter how many innocent children you've saved, you were willing to risk your life to leave me-" 

Aziraphale quickly shut his mouth, turning his head away as he felt his face heat up. He sighs, shaking his head, "You're such a fool."

Crawly smirks following his gaze with a serpent's gaze, "What was that, Aziraphale? Were you saying you were worried about me?"

"What?" Aziraphale forced out a laugh, refusing to look at the demon, "No! Most definitely not. Do you realize the amount of paperwork you would have to complete with discoporating? It would be years before you would be sent back up here… Wouldn't have another demon to thwart."

"Uh-huh…" Crawly breathed out a harsh cough as he rested his head against the angel's chest, trying to absorb any lick of heat he was emitting, "Sure."

They were silent for a while, the sounds of the crashing waves nearly lulling them to sleep. Aziraphale still held onto Crawly, their wings still wrapped around each other. The angel closed his eyes, his heart still conflicted with the emotions of nearly losing Crawly. He pressed a soft kiss into the auburn curls before resting his chin upon them. 

"Twenty-seven…" Aziraphale breathed out as he looked at the sleeping children.

"Sorry?" Crawly whispered as he sat up, pulling away from the warmth. 

"You saved twenty-seven children, Crawly. How did you do it? That rain was designed to wash away the wicked… and yet you barely survived."

"I dunno. A demonic miracle, I guess. But your lot is the one killing everyone. I guess it was something to stop."

"The Great Flood?"

"No, daft angel. The killing of innocent children." Crawly's voice was as cold as his skin, "They did nothing wrong, and you lot decide to say 'hey why don't we drown them all and give them nothing but a rainbow in return.' Leading children to demonic slaughter. If this is what the Great plan contains, then Hell must look like Heaven in the human's eyes."

"You don't know that. For all we know it's-"

"Don't you bloody say ineffable. I will fly out into the sea again if you do…"

"Crawly… please." Aziraphale's voice was nothing but a dull whisper, his fingers clenching tightly around his forearms, "I don't want to watch you nearly die again. I can't bear it… it nearly killed me, Crawly."

"It wot?" 

Aziraphale quickly shook his head not wanting to repeat it. He sighs, resigning in on himself as the cold rain blew in from the window, "Nothing. Why don't you get some rest? I hardly believe that the blisters are completely healed."

Crawly only stared at the angel, seeing the admittance on his face. Releasing a serpent's hiss, he slowly brought a hand to cup Aziraphale's face, "You said twenty-seven. How did you know, angel? No one would know unless they watched and counted. Giving the children warm blankets and such. You did watch me. You were the one who pulled me from the sea."

"Oh please. Don't be ridiculous. I couldn't possibly have done that. It would be disobeying an order." Aziraphale spattered, the heat coming back to his face.

"You're a horrible liar, angel." Crawly cooed as he lowered his hand and retreated into the warm embrace, his face buried in the crook of Aziraphale's neck, "You chose to save me instead of letting me turn to sludge."

"What can I say, Crawly? I'm an angel. It comes with the territory. I can neither accept nor deny the possibility. Think of the consequences that could-" Aziraphale stopped as a finger was placed against his lips, golden eyes meeting cerulean. He swallowed, his gaze widening at the proximity of their faces. So close. They were so close.

"Hush." Crawly smirked as he slowly brushed his finger against the angel's bottom lip before leaving it altogether. "You're going to wake the kids."

"Oh… yes. Right." Aziraphale returned the small smile, their gaze lingering before Crawly curled up in his warm embrace. If he'd known better, he could've sworn that he could have felt Crawly's heart rush to meet the thunderous beat of his own. 

**Author's Note:**

> you can find me on tumblr @ darkshadows93 if you ever want to chat or asking questions. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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